OK, I know it isn't officially spring, but the days have been so warm, that the snow is rapidly melting. The animals have come alive and are robust and full of joy. The little ewe Jacob, one of Stephen's daughters, jumps with pleasure when she is about to be fed, straight up into the air off all fours and so does her father, though she has never met him. The goats are playful and the ewes are relaxed as their bellies are growing with their little ones. But the ones that are the happiest are the birds. Cooped up all winter in two tiny buildings, only out to eat and drink and then back in to stay warm, they now have the run of the barnyard. The Ameraucanas love to hang out with the adult ewes and are in their pen, eating the Great Pyrenees dog meat and scratching through the sheep manure for worms or eggs or whatever they find there. One little hen found a composting pile with dirt on top, which was fully thawed and she was in Heaven, bathing herself in it. A duck fell asleep, soundly, on a pile of straw, abandoning all cares. Normally the Khaki Campbell ducks are a little flighty and getting close enough for a good picture is not so easy. The geese are searching for nesting areas, so I made three for them today. There are four females and I will have to come up with a fourth nest in the area for her. As a reward for their freedom, the hens laid a dozen eggs today. Thank you my little chickens! The problem with free range chickens, though, is they lay the eggs in strange places, like the straw pile or the hay bales. There were two duck eggs too and soon, it looks like the geese will start to lay as well. The bunnies will visit the buck and there will be little bunnies...oh the fun of spring is wonderful on a warm day.

A Partridge Chantecler hen in the hay bale. She left a present of a beautiful egg there.

The bantam hen, a Silky, Ameraucana cross, bathing in the dirt. Last year she hatched 9 babies near the end of summer.

The two girl bunnies have been play mating with each other, so it is time to introduce them to the buck, Peter Rabbit.